Cream Spike Agave

Cream Spike is a compact, variegated Agave applanata selected for its blue-green rosette leaves edged in creamy margins. Juniper Level Botanic Garden's Plant Delights Nursery identifies the plant as a clone of A. applanata and describes it as a compact container specimen; the original selection history is not documented clearly enough to name a breeder. ## Form and placement The stiff leaves form a rounded rosette with sharp marginal teeth and a pointed terminal spine. Place it where its architectural form can be seen and where the spines will not catch people using a path. The cream margins add contrast to rock gardens and patio containers, including climates where a pot can be protected in winter. Plant Delights lists 10 inches tall by 1 foot wide and USDA Zones 9a–10b; a specialist succulent reference reports larger mature examples, so size can vary by clone, age, and cultivation. ## Growing conditions Use a sharply draining mineral or succulent mix and provide full sun to light shade. Let the mix dry between deep waterings; excess moisture can cause rot. This is an evergreen, slow-growing succulent, and mature plants produce offsets that can be separated when they are large enough to handle. ## Maintenance Remove only damaged leaves and keep the crown dry in winter. Protect the plant from hard freezes or grow it in a movable container where colder winters occur. Agaves flower only after many years; a flowering rosette then dies, while offsets can continue the clump. [Plant Delights Nursery](https://www.plantdelights.com/products/agave-applanata-cream-spike) records the cultivar identity and compact dimensions; [LLIFLE's succulent entry](https://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/SUCCULENTS/Family/Agavaceae/529/Agave_applanata_cv._Cream_Spike) describes its variable larger adult form, variegation, cultivation, and offsets; [Kew](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:77343109-1) recognizes A. applanata as a Mexican succulent species.